Automatic filling-replenishing loom.



u. H'EBEHT.

AUTOMATIC FILLING REPLENISHING LOOM. APPLICATION FILED JULY a. 1916.

1,218,258. Patented Mar. 6,1917.

lnvenfor.

Ubuld HeberI byMW'kW -ATTys arnnr onnio UBALD HEBERT, OF MANCHESTER, NEWHAMPSHIRE, ASSIGNOR, BY IVIE SNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO DRAPER CORPORATION,OF HOPEDALE, IVIASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORA- TION' 0F MAINE.

AUTOMATIC FILLING-REPLENISHING LOOlVL Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 6, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, UBALD HEBERT, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Manchester, county of Hillsborough, State of New Hampshire,have invented an Improvement in Automatic Filling-Replenishing Looms, ofwhich the following description, in connectionwith the accompanyingdrawing, is a specification, like characters on the drawing representinglike parts.

This invention relates to improvements in filling replenishing looms inwhich a supply of filling carriers is maintained in a hopper from whichthe filling carriers are transferred successively to the running shuttleby a suitable transferrer, and one object of the invention is to providemeans to secure the proper position of the filling carrier duringtransfer in order that it may be directed into the shuttle in properposition.

The invention in its more specific form relates to a fillingreplenishing loom of the well known Northrop type in which anintermittently rotatable hopper is employed carrying a series of fillingcarriers about its periphery.

More particularly the invention relates to filling replenishing loomsmaking use of filling carriers having feeling slots in the barrelthereof such as are illustrated for example in the patents to WVilliamParker Straw No. 906,718 granted December 15, 1908, No. 1,053,673,granted February 18,1913, and No. 1,092,959 granted April 1 1, 1914.When this type of filling carrier is employed it is necessary that theslot therein shall be positioned in a definite relation to the feeler inorder that the latter may work properly. Consequently the butts of thefilling carriers are provided with suitable positioning 7 means, usuallyslabbed or flattened surfaces generally in planes at right angles to thelongitudinal planes of the slot, and these surfaces are engaged bysuitable jaws within the shuttle to retain the'filling carriers inposition. The filling carriers are carried improper position. As aresult the feeler fails to operate or a smash is caused.

Heretofore it has been proposed as in the patent to Alonzo E. RhoadesNo. 1,167,863 granted January 4, 1916 to provide a vertically movabledevice which shall seize the positioning faces of the filling carrierand move down with the filling carriermaintaining it in position untilit is forced into theshuttle.

In, my application 107 ,247 filed concurrently herewith .I havedisclosed an invention subordinate to that of my prior applicationwherein as one of the chief features of the invention the guiding meansis pivotally mounted and wherein also in the preferred form the guidingsurfaces or elements are inclined to cooperate with inclined fillingcarrier seats in the hopper.

The present invention is in its main fea tures subordinate to my priorapplication herewith. In the present invention the gu1d1ng means movesrearwardly and for-.

wardly in a rectilinear direction as in my first mentioned applicationand is provided with inclinedguiding surfaces as in my second aforesaidapplication. In this invention the guiding means instead of being movedrearwardly by a connection to the transferrer is moved rearwardly by theaction of the filling carrier as it is thrust by the transferrer fromthe hopper into the shuttle, the forward movement taking place under theaction of a spring.

Other features of the invention will more fully appear from thefollowing description and the accompanying drawings and will be pointedout in the annexed claims.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is an end elevation partly in transverse section of asuflicient portion of aloom necessary to disclose one of the preferredembodiments of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the hopper stand showing in plan theguiding means forming the subject matter of this invention.

. The general construction of the loom may be and is that of the wellknown Northrop type of filling replenishing loom and needs no extendeddescription. It includes a r0- tatable battery feeder or hoppercomprising parallel disks between which filling carriers such as bobbinsare mounted in a circular series.

One of these disks 1 is illustrated herein as having a peripheral series2 of bobbin seats provided with parallel walls 3 adapted to engage theslabbed positioning faces upon the butts of the bobbins. The hopper isrotatably mounted upon a shaft or stud 4 rigidly secured to a hopperstand 5 having a laterally extending bracket 6 by which it is secured tothe loom frame. Said bracket has an extension 6* to which is secured anabutment 7 having grooves adapted to engage the rings upon the bobbinand to direct the bobbin in its transfer from the hopper to the shuttle.

A circular flange 8 on the hopper stand surrounding the disk 1 serves toprotect the butts of the bobbins until they reach substantially transferposition at which point the flange is interrupted and a pivoted bobbinsupport 9 provided which holds yieldably the bobbin against the abutment7 during its transfer.

The mechanism for effecting transfer is of a well known type comprisinga transfer arm 10 pivotally mounted upon a stud 11 extending from thehopper stand and provided with a downwardly extending arm 12 throughwhich it is actuated upon a. call for filling replenishment. Theopposite or free end of the transfer arm is provided with a curved heador hammer 18 adapted to engage the base of the bobbin and thrust it fromthe hopper into the shuttle. The transferrer is normally retained inelevated position by a spring 14 anchored to the stud 11 and extendingbeneath the arm 10.

The hopper is rotated to bring the bobbins successively into atransferring position by means of a dog 15 pivotally mounted upon a studon the transfer arm 10, the dog 15 having a tooth 16 in operativeengagement with teeth 17 upon a circular ratchet secured to or integralwith the disk 1. Reverse rotation of the hopper is prevented by aeounterweighted pawl 18 adapted to engage the teeth 17 of the ratchet.

In the operation of the device the transfer arm 10 is forced downwardlyby the usual bunter mechanism on the lay causing the head 13 to strikethe base of the bobbin and thrust it forcibly from the hopper into theshuttle. During the downward movement of the transfer arm the tooth 16of the dog 15 falls beneath the next succeeding tooth upon the ratchet17 and upon the elevation of the transfer arm 10 causes, through theratchet 17, the rotation of the hopper one step to place the next bobbinin transfer position By reason. of the fact that the butt of the bobbinis held by the bobbin support 9 in rolling contact with the abutment 7as transfertakes place the force applied by the transferrer to the buttof the bobbin has a tendency to rotate it so that during its passagefrom the hopper to the shuttle it may become improperly positioned.

The present invention comprises the introduction between the hopper andshuttle of a guide or conveyer normally held in communicative relationto the bobbin seat of the hopper which is in transferring position butadapted upon transfer to be moved rearwardly into registry with theshuttle by the movement of the filling carrier under the influence ofthe thrust of the transferrer.

The bobbin 20, for the transfer of which the present invention isdesigned, is provided with a feeling slot in its barrel a short distancefrom its base. The butt of the bobbin is slabbed to form parallelpositioning faces 22 adapted to be engaged by guides in the shuttle toretain the feeling slot in proper position to receive the feeler uponsubstantial exhaustion of filling.

The walls of the peripheral bobbin seats in the hopper engage thepositioning faces on the bobbins and retain them in substantially properposition for transfer to the shuttle. The bobbin seats preferably areinclined to the radii of the hopper so that when a bobbin reachestransferring position, the positioning faces of its butt are slightlyinclined to the vertical and any rotative movement of the bobbin causedby engagement with a guide in the shuttle will tend to position thebobbin in the shuttle Jaws.

The guiding means for retaining the rotative position of the bobbinunchanged as it is being transferred from the hopper to the shuttlecomprises a conveyer or chute 23 having walls 24 adapted to formcontinuations of the walls of the bobbin seat which is in transferringposition.

The conveyer has an extension 25 which is slidably mounted upon theextension 6 of the bracket stand and is held down upon said extension bya plate 26 which may be secured to the bracket, stand by the same rivetsor bolts 27 which secure the abutment 7 thereto. The end of the conveyerextension 25 is flanged upwardly to form a seat for a helical spring 2 8which rests its oppo site end against a post 29 secured to or formedintegral with the hopper stand bracket 6. It will be noted that thehopper construction and hopper bracket construction illustrated hereinare substantially the same as those illustrated in my prior Patent No.1,185,094 and that the only modification of the patented structure whichis necessary to permit the embodiment of the improve ment herein is tocut away the portion of the lateral extension of the hopper standbracket from the points a to 7) preferably leaving a supporting ledge ctherebetween' for the extension 25 of the conveyer.

In the operation of the device the actuation of the transfer arm forcesthe bobbin from the hopper into the inclined guideway of the conveyer orchute 23. The force of the transfer arm first causes a rotation of thehopper as the bobbin is maintained against the abutment 7 by the bobbinsupport 9. As the bobbin passes from the hopper into the conveyer thelatter is moved rearwardly against the action of the spring 28. Thismovement of the conveyer is in consonance with the movement of the layas it approaches transferring position so that the action of thereciprocating conveyer has the double function of maintaining the bobbinagainst rotative movement during transfer and also of providing a longerperiod in which the conveyer and shuttle are in registry orcommunication. This insures the proper positioning of the slabbedpositioning faces of the bobbin butts between the guiding means on theshuttle jaws.

It is to be understood that various modifications of construction may bemade within the scope of the invention defined by the following claimsand also that while the guiding means interposed between the hopper andshuttle have been described with particular reference to the use'ofbobbins having feeling slots in the barrels thereof it is adapted to beused with bobbins of the usual type for the purpose of more effectivelyinsuring transfer.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A filling replenishing loom comprising a hopper adapted to contain aplurality of filling carriers, a transferrer and means to actuate thesame to thrust a filling carrier into the shuttle, a slidably mountedconveyer intermediate of said hopper and shuttle provided with guidinginstrumentalities adapted to engage and position the filling carrierbeing transferred and so disposed as to cause said conveyer to be movedrearwardly into registry with the shuttle by the movement of the fillingcarrier under the influence of the thrust of the transferrer.

2. A filling replenishing loom comprising a rotatable hopper having aperipheral series of filling carrier seats inclined to the radii of thehopper, a transferrer and means for actuating the same to thrust afilling carrier into the shuttle and a slidably mounted conveyerintermediate of the hopper and shuttle having guiding instrumentalitiesadapted to receive a positioned filling carrier from the hopper and tomaintain the filling carrier in the same rotative position duringtransfer, said conveyer being movable into registry with the shuttle bythe movement of the filling carrier under the influence of the thrust ofthe transferrer.

3. A filling replenishing loom comprising a rotary hopper having aperipheral series of filling carrier seats, a hopper stand having asupporting bracket, a transferrer and means for actuating the same tothrust a filling carrier from said hopper into the shuttle, a conveyerintermediate of said hopper and shuttle slidably mounted upon saidbracket and resilient means for normally maintaining said conveyer incommunicative relation with a filling carrier seat in said hopper,guiding instrumentalities upon said conveyer adapted to receive apositioned filling carrier from the hopper v and direct the same to theshuttle, said guiding means being positioned to cause said conveyer tobe moved rearwardly into registry with the shuttle by the movement ofthe carrier under the influence of the thrust of the transferrer.

4. A filling replenishing loom comprising a rotary hopper having aperipheral series of filling carrier seats inclined to the radii of saidhopper, a hopper stand having a supporting bracket, an abutment forguiding the filling carrier from the hopper to the shuttle supported bysaid bracket, a transferrer and means for actuating the same to thrust afilling carrier from said hopper into the shuttle, a conveyerintermediate of said hopper and shuttle, having guiding walls formingextensions of the walls of said filling carrier seats, said con-.

veyer being slidably mounted upon said bracket and resilient means fornormally maintaining said conveyer in communicative relation with afilling carrier seat in said hopper and adapted to permit said conveyerto be moved rearwardly into registry with the shuttle by the movement ofthe carrier under the influence of the thrust of the transferrer.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

UBALD HEBERT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

